How seaworthy is a telstar

[Whgoff]

Just curious how seaworthy they are.... I currently own a macgregor 26 so obviously trailering is important to me to save on storage .... currently I sail a lot in the fl keys and I rarely go past 10 miles out from shore the boat I have has worked perfectly for where i sail now.. in the next few years I am wanting to take a year off and sail around the exumas and further south and while some have taken their macgregors through the exumas...thats the upper limits of their abilities..... I would like a boat that I can go through the bahamas and carribean for 6 months and then trailer it home to spend time with family ....basically a snow bird only going south to sail ..... I've had my eye on a corsair f27 for a while and from my understand they are true blue water boats but the draw back is very very cramped quarters even compared to what I have now ..... I'm trying to decide if maybe a telstar 28 would be a better option than a corsair f27 but I'm getting conflicting info on their seaworthiness any input is greatly appreciated

[Ron]

I wouldn't classify either the Telstar 28 or any Corsair as "Blue Water". Besides being on the cramped side (Telstar a drop better), I wouldn't want to see 10 foot plus seas or gale force winds in either. But some crazy people have crossed the ocean in small sail and row boats.

[Bill]

Really good question. Anybody out there who has been out in 10'+ seas? I had a salesman tell me of being in 10-12' at night in a race, I wonder if this isn't salesman talk, and it was at night, maybe just felt like the waves were that big. There are pictures of them in a blow, with the leeward hull awash, but doesn't appear to show big waves. I have never heard of a Telstar breaking up, anybody? Heavy banging can elongate the holes where the stainless folding hinge bolts to the fiberglass, especially forward. Several Telstars I looked at had loose bolts there, very easy to fix, and quite possible to reinforce with a "nut plate" on the underside. A number of owners have reported breaking the centerboard, I understand Chesapeake Small Craft can make a board stronger than the original on at least some of the Telstars, or you can make your own, as I did.

[escape]

You may want to read this post: http://www.telstarowners.net/bb/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=356

[Whgoff]

Yeah I've read that thread from years ago but it doesn't really give a very good story of just what happened. There really is so little info on the telstar out there for a would be potential buyer to tell how capable of vessels they are.

[escape]

Well I like the comment by Trashpad: «The story does show that the Telstar is one tough boat and will take care of it's owner even if the owner will not take care of him self. It does answer a question we all have had about how she will handle a flooded ama. To be able to make it across the stream like that is a testament to Tony's design.»

I have sailed on a Neel 45 in the Caribbean, not sure I would have enjoy doing the same crossings with my T28.

I do love my T28 but I dont think they are made for high seas.

[Mangodoc]

Sailing this winter in the relative calm of the northern Gulf coast, I have learned an important lesson on my Telstar 28- the light weight of the boat makes for a REALLY UNCOMFORTABLE ride in rough seas. This is my first non-monohull, and I never fully appreciated the importance of a big, heavy keel in rough seas. Intellectually, I understood the concept, but until I really FELT the discomfort of being sloshed around in a light multihull I never truly appreciated it. Can you sail her in rough weather? Sure, even safely (from a technical standpoint). But I’m not real sure why you’d want to. And waiting for a good weather window would be all the more important. This is not the boat I want to sail across the Stream and through the Caribbean.

[escape]

I agree with you Mangodoc about the comfort of a heavy keel boat in rough seas. I must point out that although the Neel 45 being much bigger and heavier that the T28, the «sloshed around» motion is the same. Same thing with a catamaran from my modest experience.

[onremlop]

My wife went out on a beautiful day of MN lake sailing a few years ago and started heading back to our marina because we spotted some ominous clouds. We retracted the amas and as we were going to round the bend into the marina we were hit by a sudden blast of wind. I tried to point into the wind. That didn't happen, so I turned the bow towards the shore of boulders and we headed for someone's lake dock. They came running down and helped us tie off all the while the waves were coming over the transom. After about a half hour, the storm subsided and we motored about a 1/4 mile to our marina and slip. I was a bit shaky and had a hard time steering into the slip. The marina owner came over and said we were the only boat out there. He said the winds hit 63 mph. I later realized my centerboard got kicked up resulting in a less than passing grade in the docking department. I really thought I was going to lose the boat when that gust of wind kicked up.

I think these are tough, fun boats to sail, but I don't think I would sail it around the Caribbean. They don't have that much room below.

[wooden]

I want to share with everyone my recent experience with this excellent boat. The good news is that it is very seaworthy. The bad new is that things do go wrong, but the redundant systems with this boat are literal lifesavers.

I just returned from a trip to Cuba. I carefully planned the trip with a first mate and a flotilla of one other boat, a Gemini. I had a raft, all necessary safety equipment, and I just put a new Suzuki 30hp outboard on, and it is a fantastic engine. More on that for another post, but it is so quiet that I cannot hear it running when in idle.

We left for Cuba and sailed through the night. Conditions were good for sailing. I burned 8 gallons over the 122 mile trip. Because the Florida Straight current was strong (about 3.5kts), we averaged 3.5kts over the trip.
We had a fantastic time in Cuba, and spend 6 days bicycling through Havana. I would encourage anyone who can, visit Cuba before it becomes commercialized.

We checked out of Hemmingway Marina just before a tropical depression set in. It was our best weather window. Winds were at 12 knots directly in our face, and the seas were 4-6 feet initially. We tacked for the first 20 miles until we hit a had rainstorm. I dropped the main and pulled in the genoa. We motored for the next 5 miles through the storm in 8-10 foot seas and 20-25 knot winds. On the other side, the conditions were better for sailing. I hoisted the main and unfurled the genoa. The winds were 15 knots and I was trucking along at 6-7 under sail. It was great……..until the starboard leeward outrigger failed. The front pivot point, the large solid bolt and massive plate simply broke. This allowed the outrigger to bounce uncontrollably ripping the fiberglass from the aft part of the outrigger, separating the entire outrigger from the boat. Fiberglass was flying everywhere as I pulled the main and genoa.

We evaluated the situation, and determined that the boat was floating well, and that we could hoist the outrigger using rope in the fore and aft attach points. This kept the outrigger out of the water enough to keep it from sinking. Although the boat was somewhat unstable, I never felt it was at risk of capsizing, even when it was hitting waves. We motored back to the Florida Keys at about 5 kts over 28 hours and a long dark sleepless night. I was never frightened because we had option B, which was to abandon ship and have our flotilla of one take us back.
The good new is that the boat is a very seaworthy boat that can handle adverse conditions, but there are areas of concern and need for inspection. There are of course limitations to what it can handle as well, but that is with every boat. I would not consider this a good blue water boat, but for short trips across open what, under reasonable weather conditions, it is a fine vessel.
I will be repairing my boat because I love it. I may be reaching out to others in this forum for advice and direction as I move forward. Thanks in advance.

Steve Wooden